A Symbol of Love
by Silva Bramley
Summary: Gaara was just a baby found beneath a tree in the middle of winter. Ino was just the daughter of the carpenter who found him. How could they know that, in the future, they were the difference between the Kingdom's survival and it's doom? GaaraInoSasuke.
1. Prolouge

The door opened, letting in a gust of cold and snow. A slender woman looked up from the kitchen table, wondering who was lingering at the door and letting in the harsh winter. She stood up, bracing herself against the table.

"Honey, step inside. Ino will have her death of cold," She said, her young daughter looking up at the mention of her name. Ino looked from her mother to her father, her beautiful eyes wide with curiosity.

The tall blonde man stepped in, but neglected to shut the door as he shifted the small bundle in his arms. He crossed the room to lay the bundle down on the kitchen table. Glancing imploringly at her husband, she gazed down at the bundle, pushing aside the blankets to get a good look. The woman gasped and yanked her hand back, shrinking away from the bundle as if it held a poisonous snake, ready to attack.

"Why? Where?" She asked, seeming to have trouble with stringing coherent sentences together. Despite this sudden inability, her husband understood.

"I found him in the forest, laying in the snow below a tree. He would have frozen," Ino's Father said. Ino drew near the table, growing more curious as they spoke of a 'he'. She stretched up, trying to see over her father's arm, but all she saw were black blankets.

"As he should have," Ino's Mother said, her voice quavering. Ino looked up at her mother, wondering why she sounded so scared.

"Ino, shut the door," Her Father said. Ino didn't understand the tone he used, but she understood the order. Quietly, she tiptoed to the door and threw her little body against it to shut the heavy door.

"What were you thinking bringing this thing into our house?" Her mother demanded, anger and fear mingling in her features.

"He's a child, Maiko," Ino's Father said, sternly. Ino reappeared at her Father's elbow and attempted once again to look at the child they were talking about. Her mother, with wild eyes, grabbed the blanket and ripped it from the baby's body.

"Just look at his hair, Inoichi! It's obvious!" Maiko, Ino's mother, yelled desperately, "He has the flaming red hair of a demon. Look at him! He's the spawn of great evil!"

"Maiko! Listen to yourself!" Ino's father replied, "He's but a human baby. Not a demon."

"Look, Momma," Ino said, finally able to see the baby and pressing a gentle thumb to his cheek, "His eyes are like water."

Maiko froze, staring at her daughter and her tender touch as she rubbed the baby's cold, exposed cheeks. The baby did have blue eyes, not unlike Ino. The baby had been pulled from it's slumber from the yelling and the loss of his warm blankets, and was looking around with full intelligent, blue eyes. Maiko's mouth tightened as she peered into his eyes.

"Look at this," Maiko murmured, carefully pushing away the red hair, still reluctant to touch the him, and indicating the symbol on the child's forehead. Ino reached forward, to touch the symbol, but her mother stopped her with a gentle hand, "How curious."

"What's it mean?" Ino asked, trying to discern it's meaning with narrowed eyes. With no success, she blinked and looked up at her parents.

"It's gaara, the symbol of love," Inoichi, her father answered.

"Gaara," Ino repeated. The baby's eyes focused on Ino's face, and a small smile formed on his rosy lips.

"It would be wrong to put him out in the cold," Inoichi said, "We will not be murders. We will give him a home and give him a name."

"A name?" Maiko repeated, warily.

"Gaara," Ino said again, not looking away from the baby.

"Gaara it is then. Welcome to our family, little one," Inoichi said, wrapping the blankets back around the baby.

"He'll bring destruction to us all, just you wait," Maiko said, though she turned and set about preparing warm goat's milk for the infant.

**A/N: Sorry, I couldn't help myself.**


	2. Ino's Safety

"Ino, it's ok," The red-head murmured.

Ino stood stock still, watching the shrinking forms of some of the village boys with clenched fists. At first, she didn't move and Gaara thought she hadn't heard him. He licked his lips, about to repeat himself louder, but Ino finally turned to look at him.

"It's not ok, Gaara," Ino said, her voice weirdly calm and not matching her agitated appearance.

"They haven't a lick of sense. It's stupid to let them get to you," Gaara replied, shaking his head.

"They were calling you a demon," Ino said, her voice rising now, no longer the eerie calm. Gaara almost sighed in relief, happy to see the normalcy return in his blonde friend.

"I know," Gaara said, and he fell into a brooding silence. He didn't want to tell Ino that this was a daily thing. Usually, the others avoided throwing rocks and calling him a demon when Ino was around. They were to afraid she'd tell Inoichi. But, they hadn't seen her, about to follow him out of the trees.

"It's not ok for them to call you that. You aren't a demon. You're Gaara. My Gaara," Ino said, placing a pale hand on his shoulder. A strange feeling that'd been bothering him every time Ino touched him flashed through him and settled in his stomach. The first time he'd felt it, two months ago, he thought he was sick. After a while, though, he'd come to associate it with Ino.

Gaara turned away from her, not wanting her to see the look of confusion. She would surely misinterpret it, and connect it with the village boys. More than anything, he was afraid they'd start on her if she told. He didn't want to see Ino get hurt.

"Gaara, are you ok?" Ino asked. Gaara didn't speak, but nodded his answer. He remembered the way her hair seemed to fly up behind her as she ran from the trees and stood in front of him.

"Don't tell Inoichi," Gaara said, turning around to look her in the eye. He watched her brow wrinkle in concern and disagreement with his wish to keep this secret.

"I can't promise not to tell," Ino said, and quickly added, "I don't like to break my promises, and if I felt the need to tell Inoichi, I want the option. I dislike giving my word if there is a chance I might break it. But, as of now, I won't tell him."

Gaara didn't know which he wanted to do more: smile with relief or sigh in exasperation at her blatant refusal to promise and her subtle threat of telling in the future. But, Gaara was stubborn, too, and unwilling to tell Ino that he didn't want her to tell because of her own safety. It sounded dramatic and Ino would accuse him of cosseting her.

"Just as well. I want to walk on my own for a while, I will return in time for supper," Gaara said, starting to recede into himself as his mind filled with thoughts. He needed to go somewhere quiet where he didn't need to guard his expression and could think freely without interruption.

"Gaara, I told you I won't tell Inoichi, at least not yet. Please don't be angry with me," Ino said, the frown was unbecoming for her pretty face. Gaara much preferred her mischievous smiles.

"I'm not angry, I just need to be alone for a while. Surely you understand," Gaara said, pausing and then adding with a rare smile, "Unless you require another's presence constantly lest you die from lack of attention."

Ino was shocked at first, her mouth open slightly, before she smiled widely and shoved him playfully.

"Gaara, you shock me," Ino said, and Gaara was pleased to see the return of her usual, attractive smile, "It throws me off balance when you show your humor. You should show it more often, I like it."

There was a tense silence after these words, in which Gaara nodded his head and dismissed himself, leaving a confused looking Ino standing beneath the large elm tree with hand-sized stones littering the tree's shadow.

Gaara walked quickly at first, not wanting the enigmatic blonde to catch up with him. When he got far enough away and was sure that she wasn't following him, he slowed and eventually stopped.

He had stopped on the soft, sandy beach of the dark-watered lake. Here, the sand was a dark tan color with a mixture of finely ground pieces and huge chunks of rock. The water was a dark navy blue, that if you were to put your hand into it, you wouldn't see it below the surface and at night it turned into a inky black.

Gaara had always been drawn to this place, for reasons unknown to him, and found that he could think better when he was here. People usually stayed away from it, fearing it and giving it the name Demon Lake. One time Gaara had mentioned it casually to Ino, and she told him that the place gave her the creeps and she avoided it.

A sudden, huge gust of wind blew up his clothes and unruly red hair, surprising him and making him stumble. He turned to look where the wind had come from, but saw a woman standing there.

Gaara was taller than her, but she seemed older than himself and older than Ino. Her hair was blonde, a darker shade than Ino's and she had a steely, grey color for eyes. Ino's expressive eyes were a beautiful shade of blue. The woman was tall, but Gaara was taller than her.

"It's fitting to find you here," She said, and her voice rang clear and confident. Gaara masked his expression, carefully hiding his confusion and unease.

It was silent for a few moments and the woman cocked her head to the side, causing the black hood of her robe to follow and fall over her shoulder.

"You choose not to respond. Is this because you have nothing to say, or you're afraid it'll reveal the emotions you're trying to hide?" The woman asked and Gaara noticed that symbols were sewed in blood red thread along the hems of her sleeves.

"Upon meeting a stranger, it is foolish to waste words," Gaara said. He wasn't sure how she'd respond, but she surprised him by laughing.

"Oh, but you also forget that it's foolish to be rude and not speak when a woman speaks to you," The woman said, smiling. Gaara found himself not liking her smile, it had a sneaky nature to it and he found himself distrusting her.

"I didn't intend to be rude. I'm just careful, not used to meeting people around here," Gaara said, indicating the dark lake with a small motion of his hand.

"The villagers call it Demon Lake, am I right?" The woman said, framing it as a question, but not really asking.

"That is right," He answered nonetheless, and grew uncomfortable. Why was this woman standing here talking to him. She obviously wasn't from around these parts, for she was dressed outlandishly and spoke with an accented voice.

The woman paused and pulled her hood up, all signs of good-nature disappearing from her face. Her eyes hardened and her face was impassive.

"I must leave," She said, pressing her palms together as if in prayer, "I thought I had more time, but even the most knowledgeable make errors. Meet me here tomorrow at dusk."

"Meet you? Why?" Gaara asked, his mask slipping in his surprise and growing confusion.

"To talk about Ino and her future safety," She said, looking him over and adding with a tsking noise, "You need more practice in concealing your thoughts. You aren't as good as I thought. Kankurou will take care of that, no doubt."

"Ino's safety? Who's Kankurou?" Gaara asked frantically. But, in another gust of wind the woman was gone.

**A/N: Temari and Kankurou are going to have a different role in this story than in my last. In the last one, they were friends, but they're going to be -er- less then friends this time around. Sorry.**


	3. Miscalculation

A girl dressed in a pure white robe ascended the stairs, returning to the white, stone castle from her solace in the garden. Her brown hair was unbound and hung loosely down her back, as was the custom of taking solace. The girl preferred it tied up in two buns, her signature style.

She paused at the top of the stairs, pulling her hair to the side and plaiting it quickly. She had an urgent message for Tsunade and had not the time to pull her hair up in two buns. She tied it with a ribbon, and let it fall back between her shoulder blades.

She nodded at the other girls she passed, some wearing white but most wearing a light blue, but didn't stop to talk to any of them. Her chocolate, brown eyes passed over several doors, before she stopped at a heavy wood door.

Knocking on the door, she waited patiently for the woman to answer the door. These were the lady's personal chambers, and one did not disturb her unless the news were of utmost importance.

After a moment or two the door opened. Standing there in a piercingly white robe, her blonde hair divided in two braids, was Lady Tsunade. Her eyes ran quickly over the girl standing before her, calculating and interpreting.

"Tenten," She said coolly, "You've just returned from Solace?"

"Yes, my lady, I've just returned and I have news," The brown haired girl answered, holding her head high and her back straight.

"Of Ino?" Tsunade asked, still standing in the doorway.

"No, of Gaara," Tenten answered readily, searching Tsunade's carefully controlled face for any sign of change. There was none.

"Sakura," Tsunade called over Tenten's shoulder. The girl who had been passing halted and looked to Lady Tsunade.

"My lady?" Sakura asked, stepping beside Tenten, her eyes trained on Tsunade's face. She was wearing white robes like Tenten, both of them clerics from the same level.

"Go fetch Neji, Naruto, and Shikamaru. Better get Hinata as well," Tsunade ordered firmly before beckoning for Tenten to follow her into her rooms.

They walked through a small hallway with an ancient, blue rug stretching it's length. At the end of the hallway was a large room with a high ceiling. There were three doors branching off from this room, leading to the Lady's sleeping chamber, her dinning area, and her bathroom chamber. The room they stood in now was furnished with several chairs and there was a lit fireplace crackling in the corner.

"Tell me your news," Tsunade said, gesturing for her to take a seat, "Be brief about it. I would like to know it all before the others arrive."

"Temari has visited Gaara already," Tenten said, spilling the most important news first. Tsunade frowned but urged the young cleric to continue, "She hasn't told him anything or set any offers. She ran out of time, but she did tell him to meet her tomorrow. Temari told him that Ino's safety relied on them meeting by Demon Lake."

"Clever. Using Ino against him," Tsunade mused, pressing her two fingers to her mouth in a gesture of thought, "They're moving sooner than we planned. But, we could use this to help us."

Tenten was quiet as she thought about this, trying to see it from the angle Tsunade had seen it. Her brow wrinkled, the only sign of her deep thought showing on her face, and at first she couldn't see it. Then it came clear to her.

"Ino's young, but close enough to the prime age of learning. We can gather her soon and she'll have the motivation to learn," Tenten said, leaning forward in her chair. Tsunade smiled but didn't answer. The two of them waited together in a collective silence for Sakura to return with the people she been sent to fetch.

"Ah, Sakura," Tsunade said, "Neji, Naruto, Hinata, Shikamaru. Take a seat."

"Good evening, Lady Tsunade," Neji said, taking a seat beside Tenten. He turned to look at Tenten for a moment, searching her face, before relaxing back in his chair. _No doubt_, Tenten thought, _he's interested in what I had to do with them being called to Tsunade's chambers._

"Good evening," The Lady replied back, mostly for courtesy, "Naruto, go get the silver bowl from my shelf."

The blonde haired boy crossed the room to grab the silver bowl, and the occupants of the room watched him intently, knowing what it was Lady Tsunade was going to ask of him. Naruto laid the bowl at Tsunade's feet and looked up at her expectantly.

"Tenten has just returned from solace," Tsunade said, and everyone turned to look at Tenten, "She's brought critical news about Gaara. How we respond now will determine everything."

"Is there a flaw in the plan?" Naruto asked from where he kneeled in front of Tsunade.

"No flaw, just a miscalculation," Tsunade answered, pulling a shimmering, silver bottle from her pocket. She pulled the cork and poured the metallic liquid into the bowl, filling it to the rim.

"It seems to me that a miscalculation is the same thing as a flaw, or very similar at least," Shikamaru said, not looking up from his hands as he slouched in his chair. Tenten was alarmed at the way Shikamaru spoke to the Lady, he rarely held respect for her or any other woman in the establishment.

"We shall see," Tsunade said simply, "Now, Naruto, begin."

Naruto leaned over the bowl and blew on the surface of the silver water. One ripple wrinkled the fine, perfect surface, growing until the bowl was churning like waves in a storm. A image blinked on the surface, flickering on and off as Naruto fought to bring it into focus.

Finally the ripples died down and the image held. Tenten leaned forward in her chair so she could see the vision from her spot.

"I see," Shikamaru said, watching intently as the scene unfolded before them.

--

Ino set down her fork and watched Gaara who sat beside her. He didn't seem to notice her gaze and he appeared deep in thought. Already, he had dropped his own fork several times throughout the meal and he hadn't taken a bite. Something was bothering him, and she wanted to know what.

Even though she was done with her meal, she stayed at the table long after her Mother and Father excused themselves. The house was quiet except for the clinking of plates coming from the sink where her Mother stood, washing the dinner dishes.

Gaara was still sitting at the table as well, absently playing with his dinner. Ino set her fork down, making a ringing noise and Gaara started and turned to look at her.

"Gaara, what's the matter?" Ino whispered, grabbing her napkin and wiping her mouth and hands while watching him intently. She didn't want her parents to overhear their conversation. Gaara looked at her for a moment like he was deciding what to say or not.

"You need to be careful," Gaara whispered back. Ino noticed the softening around his eyes and was surprised. Gaara was usually calm and unemotional, to see this small show of feelings was rare.

"Why? Did someone threaten you?" Ino asked urgently, careful to keep her voice low. Gaara looked back at his plate.

"I'm heading off to bed," Gaara said, picking his plate up and bringing it over to Ino's Mother. She thanked him softly and wished him a good night rest with nice dreams.

"Gaara!" Ino hissed at Gaara as he walked past her, but he acted as though he didn't hear her and kept walking up past her and into his small bedroom just up the stairs. Originally there were two bedrooms, one for Ino and one for her parents. When Gaara was found, Ino's Father built a wall in the bedroom to split the room in half.

Ino's Father was a skilled carpenter and he built their house by himself. It was beautiful with personal carvings in the walls along the stairs and around the kitchen. Ino's room had a large carving of piglets, deer, and butterflies on the wall her bed rested against among a wood scene. It was beautiful. The deer were long legged and regal, the butterflies delicate and soft, and the piglets small and cute.

She stared up at this moral her Father had made just for her while she changed into her sleepwear after storming up the stairs and slamming her door.

"Stupid Gaara not answering," Ino grumbled as she pulled her blankets up to her chin. She rolled over on to her side and sighed, thinking about how angry she was at him until she fell asleep five minutes later.

**A/N: Aha, I keep accidentally typing in first person. So if you see any spots where I switched into first person, let me know, please. XD Thank you.**

**I have to work late tonight, but I'm hoping to update Please Don't Hurt Me this weekend, too. Sorry about Nightfall, I'm stuck at one spot, but I'll fix it soon hopefully.**

**FYI: The scene that they saw in the bowl was not the one at the end of this chapter. Just to clear that up. **

**Mel-chan.**


	4. Leaving

**A/N: I almost forgot about this story! D=**

Gaara set out early the next morning. He wanted to avoid Ino, who he knew would be angry at his brush off last night, and he needed to think before he had to meet the strange women who had not-so-subtly threatened to harm Ino if he didn't.

Who was this women and where was she from? Gaara had no clue and this frustrated him to no end. He made his way down to Demon Lake. The lake didn't seem at all warmed by the early rays of light and it looked startlingly black against the light blue morning sky.

He sat down in the dark sand, letting the dark water lick his feet and ran sand through his fingers as he thought. And he sat that way throughout the passing of the day as he thought and mused.

The sky started to darken, signifying the coming of dusk and, in this case, the coming of the strange woman. He didn't move from his spot, just waited for the wind that had announced her arrival the night before. Gaara imagined the woman of dark robes floating on the wind, her hair fighting to be free from the bindings that held it in four sections and her eyes squinted as she peered down on the landscape that passed below her.

"Gaara of the Sand?" Came a deep accented, and unmistakably male, voice. Gaara finally turned to see a man that was dressed very similar to the woman he had met the night before. The man had sandy brown hair and bore facial paint that covered his face completely. Tied to his broad shoulders was a large pack nearly the same size as him.

"I don't know about of the Sand," Gaara answered, wondering why the woman hadn't come to meet him like was planned, "but, I am Gaara."

The man gave him a stern look, and Gaara wondered what he had said wrong.

"Did Temari tell you anything?" The man asked.

"Is Temari the woman who came here yesterday and told me to meet her here today?" Gaara asked.

"Yes, and it appears she didn't tell you anything," the man said, looking angry.

"She told me that if I was to meet her to talk about Ino's future safety," Gaara said, "Are you Kankurou?"

"I am," the man answered, looking shocked for a second before his face returned to the neutral, passive mask. It seemed that knowing his name had shocked the man so much that his control slipped long enough for Gaara to notice.

Gaara nodded and then stood, brushing off the sand from his pants. "Look," Gaara said, somewhat brazenly, "You better tell me what is going on and what Ino's safety has to do with it."

"Bold," Kankurou noted. "Ino being safe is up to you and your degree of compliance."

"My compliance?" Gaara asked. His brow furrowed in annoyance and anger. How dare this man demand his compliance, using Ino as a motivator.

"Be ready to leave at midnight," Kankurou said, "and don't try to escape. We will find you and we will find Ino. So be here just before midnight, or you will regret it."

---

"Who do you think she's going to send to retrieve Ino?" Sakura asked Tenten as they left Lady Tsunade's chambers.

"I don't know, but someone should be sent soon," Tenten said. She didn't understand why someone wasn't sent to retrieve Ino as soon as she turned out to be the girl from the prophecy.

"I hope she sends me," Sakura said, clasping her hands in front of her in a sign of excitement, "It would be fun."

"I don't see how it would be fun," Tenten said, regarding Sakura with a look that plainly said that she disagreed, "it's going to be hard on Ino."

"I guess it would be hard on her, but it'll be nice to get out. She'll fit in nicely here," Sakura said, determined not to let her excitement go.

Tenten was tempted to ask how she knew that Ino would fit in nicely here. Did she assume that just because Ino was the girl from the prophecy that she would get along here just fine with no problems? That she would be fine leaving her family and friends behind? Tenten had been seeing Ino a lot during her solace lately, and she knew from these visions granted to her that Ino would miss her family a lot, and her family would miss her.

Tenten wanted to ask Sakura what or who she saw during solace, but it was forbidden to talk about the things you saw with others without Lady Tsunade's express permission.

"I guess," Tenten said, sticking with the safest reply.

"It's nearly time for my solace," Sakura said, already pulling on the binding to her plait. "That meeting took most of my preparing time." Then she excused herself, half running down the hall.

"Tenten," A somber voice said, coming from behind her. Tenten turned to see Sasuke, his usually impassive face brimming with curiosity. "What's going on?"

"Oh, hello, Sasuke," Tenten said, trying to hide the nervous fidgeting of her hands. She wasn't afraid of Sasuke, but Sasuke had been excluded from the emergency meeting for a reason.

"You didn't answer my question," He pressed, watching her closely.

"I just had to tell Lady Tsunade something," She answered, trying not to give him any information to go on.

"Something that couldn't wait? Something that caused you to go to her chambers?" Sasuke asked.

"It's not any of your business, Sasuke. I needed to speak about something private with Lady Tsunade," Tenten said, her anger flaring at his needling, and hoping to instill some humility in him.

"I saw Shikamaru, Neji, and Naruto leaving Tsunade's chambers, too," Sasuke said.

"_Lady_ Tsunade," Tenten corrected and then fled.

---

"Ino?"

Ino looked up and saw Gaara appearing out of the darkness, his red hair glowing fiery in the half moon.

"Gaara, where have you been?" She asked, fingering the wooden handle of the flower basket on her lap. She'd spent most of the day gathering flowers to set on the table and to weave flower necklaces.

"Demon Lake," Gaara answered. Ino narrowed eyes when she noticed that Gaara looked anxious. Gaara looking anxious? If she hadn't been seeing it right now, she wouldn't have believed that Gaara could look anxious.

"Why do you always go there? It's so creepy," Ino asked, pulling a flower necklace from the basket. "I made you a flower necklace."

Gaara took the delicate necklace in his hands and looked like he wanted to say something but wasn't sure how to. He opened and closed his mouth several times.

"Gaara, are you alright?" Ino asked, a strange feeling settling in her stomach. "You look like something's bothering you."

"Ino, you're my closest friend," Gaara said at last. Ino looked up at him curiously. "If anything happened to you, I wouldn't be able to live with myself."

"Gaara, you're scaring me. What is the matter?" Ino asked. She stood up and looked up at his face. "Why have you been gone all day?"

"I'm leaving, Ino," Gaara said and Ino felt like someone had pulled the carpet out from underneath her feet. She wobbled a little, and Gaara reached out a hand to steady her.

"Leaving? Why?" She asked, unable to form actual coherent sentences.

"Don't worry, I'll come back for you," Gaara said. "You'll barely notice I'm gone."

"Gaara, don't leave," Ino said. Gaara closed in the distance between them and pulled her into a hug. He was so warm. Ino let her head rest on his shoulder as he patted her on the back. Then, he was gone.

And all he left Ino with was the absence of him and his heat.

"Gaara."

---

Hinata walked down the marble steps that lead away from the hall that held Lady Tsunade's chambers and the chambers of other clerics that wore white robes and into the main hallway.

She turned when she heard frantic footsteps rushing down the stairs, and saw Tenten with a flushed face and her plait floating behind her.

"Tenten?" Hinata asked, wondering why she was in such a hurry.

"Sorry, Hinata! I'm late!" She called over her shoulder as she ran around the corner. Seconds after she disappeared around the corner she saw Sasuke coming down the stairs. His face wasn't flushed and he didn't look flustered like Tenten did, but he was out of breath.

"Have you seen Tenten?" Sasuke asked. Hinata understood exactly why Tenten had been running down the stairs. Sasuke was surely probing her for answers, because he'd been the only white robed cleric who hadn't been called to Lady Tsunade's chambers.

"Yes," Hinata said. She pointed in the opposite direction of where she'd seen Tenten ran, "She went that way."

"Thank you," He said quickly and then took off in the direction that she had falsely pointed him in.


	5. AN: Name change and etc

**Dear Readers,**

**I have a few things to address quickly:**

**1. As you may have or may not have noticed, but I have changed my pen name. It used to be iluvkiba44, but now it is Silva Bramley. That is for two reasons. One, because iluvkiba44 is more like a username than a pen name. Two, because I go by so many web aliases (Melanie, Reina, Tayrn, Anna-mae) that I've decided to narrow them down to one, which will be Silva Bramley. So, I hope that doesn't confuse or upset anyone. And if someone does take up the name iluvkiba44, then just know that that is a different person entirely and I am not going back to the name.**

**2. I will still be updating my stories, but the updates will be much more slower and more far-in-between (sorry, since they were pretty slow in the first place!) due to a hectic schedule. I've recently been in a car accident (no one was hurt) but I'm going to be working more this summer to pay for it. Plus, my mother is pregnant, so I have to help her out more than I usually do. (enough about my social life, lol)**

**Also, I've started on a book that I hope to get published. So, when I do have chances to write, I'll probably write on that more than my fanfictions. **

**Now, here's a list of stories that are going to be updated the most:**

**Greater Good  
Please Don't Hurt Me  
A Symbol of Love**

**Here are the stories that probably won't be updated that often:**

**The Beginning of Forever  
Nightfall**

**And, here are the stories that probably won't be updated at all in the near future (I guess you can say they're on hiatus):**

**Neji-kun: You Will Love Me  
Te Amo**

**I'm sure I'll have one-shots still being posted, since I love to type one every once in a while. Though, it seems all my oneshots are sasukexino, lol.**

**3. I used to write strictly just Ino stories, but I've decided to branch out and write in other categories, too. So you'll notice that I've recently started a Harry Potter Story and I'll soon be starting a Fable one. (I know, I have too many stories already, but I can't help myself and I'm allowed to have as many as I like!) I don't see why that matters to you, but I've decided to fill you all in on that. =)**

**4. I've been on Fanfiction for a whole year now. Actually, a little longer now. lol. =) (I can't believe I only have two of my stories completed, though)**

**Alright, my author's note is running long now and I'm starting to ramble, so I'll end it now.**

**Yours,**

**Bram-chan. =)**


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